Joint conference by the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) and Chatham House
Ever since his now famous speech in Munich 2007, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s policies have been defined by the notion of a weakened Russia beleaguered by external and internal enemies. The portrayal of the West as prime among these enemies became even more prevalent following the global financial crisis in 2008/9 and in the wake of the 2011/2012 parliamentary and presidential elections, when mass demonstrations occurred in many large cities in Russia.
The Russian leadership has used its paradigm of a beleaguered Russia to both stoke fears and deflect public attention away from genuine dangers: rather than NATO or the European Union, it is Russia’s domestic weakness, its economic standstill and the lack of reforms in the areas of health, education and research, as well as the demographic crisis which is putting Russia at risk.
In this joint event, the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House and the Robert Bosch Center of the German Council on Foreign Relations would like to invite you to discuss the real and also the imagined dangers which Russia is facing at home, in its neighborhood and in crisis regions such as the Middle East. This event is supported by the Robert Bosch Stiftung.
The event will be held in English.
